Alison's First Day of School
by brendadelfino
Summary: Alison is finally back in Rosewood. But that doesn't mean things are easy, especially on the first day back at school.


I sighed and crossed my arms while scanning the packed entrance for Alison. It was so like her to keep people waiting. Beside me, I could feel the girls fidgeting too. Of course we were all nervous; it was Alison's first day back at school.

I wondered if people would still treat her like the queen bee or if they would look at her with pity now. After all, she was the victim here. Some big bad kidnapper had taken her far, far away from her beloved Rosewood and blindfolded her for weeks and weeks so she couldn't tell much from the time she was away. It was enough to make anyone roll their eyes.

"Maybe she's not coming," I broke the silence, trying to disguise the fact that I wished it were true.

"She's coming," Emily replied firmly. I knew Alison had the tightest grip on her, but sometimes it really got on my nerves. Couldn't she see under that under the charming smile was a conniving liar? But the truth was I wouldn't have the heart to tell poor Emily. Her feelings were obvious and speaking my mind would do more harm than good.

"We should have picked her up. Why didn't we pick her up?" Aria's voice gave away just how on edge she was too.

"Her dad wanted to drop her off," Emily countered, always the devil's advocate.

I fidgeted with my newly-dyed hair, hoping everyone forgot the resemblance Alison and I bore. Being anything like her would be a nightmare, and I needed to erase any similarity permanently. I just hoped she wouldn't rub off on us now that she was around again.

"Guys, I don't think she's coming. I think she's here," Spencer announced, shifting her gaze straight ahead.

I mirrored her gesture and saw Alison walking towards us, looking around self-consciously. It was no wonder; everyone was staring at her, whispering rude comments that, although hurtful, were the closest thing you got to the truth in this town. It was strangely gratifying to see her in that position. For once, she was on the receiving end. Yet, it was hard to tell what the crowd of people was thinking. Not everyone was spitting insults at her.

"Do they love her or hate her?" I thought out loud.

"I don't know," came Aria's surprised response.

Maybe the people were staring at her because she was practically a living dead girl. Or maybe it was because she had always been like some sort of celebrity. The kind everyone loves to know about but no one admits to liking.

To my surprise, Alison approached Cindy and Mindy. They were twins and not exactly the most popular girls in school. But that hadn't been even close to a good reason as to why Ali had tormented them before her fake death. As Emily pointed out, she used to call them _gayrons_, a combination of the words _gay morons._ If they had forgiven her because of her kidnap story, then the whole situation was really messed up.

I scrutinized her as she left the twins behind and came towards us. She looked perfect. As always, not a hair was out of place. I could sense her staring at me, almost as if she could read my thoughts and for that reason, I felt like I needed to act extra nice. Just in case she decided to turn on me. Although the nickname _Hefty Hanna_ was no longer suitable, I was sure she could come up with a new one in the blink of an eye.

"Ready?" I asked, using all my energy to muster up a sympathetic smile.

"Thanks for waiting for me," Alison said, as we turned to enter the building.

I looked over to the rest of the girls to try to see if I could read anything on their faces, but they were all looking away. Walking down the hallway wasn't any better than it had been outside. People kept their eyes glued to us and, honestly, I couldn't blame them.

"Do you know where your first class is?" Aria asked Alison as soon as we reached the end of the hall.

"I actually need to go to the guidance counsellor's office, but I don't remember where it is."

Emily swiftly offered to go with her. Of course. Alison said something before leaving, accompanying it with a saintly smile, but I wasn't paying attention. If I had to pretend to be okay with her good girl act, I swear I would puke.

Aria, Spencer and I hung back a bit, all of us clearly feeling strange about this new status quo. Spencer got called to the principal's office, which was even weirder. Aria and I watched her go, a bit perplexed.

"Do you think she's going to be okay?" she asked me as we walked to our classes.

"I hope so."

As soon as I was in my homeroom, the girl who sat to my right waved hello. I wouldn't call her a friend of mine, but she was nice to talk to in class.

"You changed your hair," she pointed out as she unpacked her things.

"Yeah, I thought I needed a change," I explained, running a hand through it.

"Looking your best for Ali's first day?" she said, clearly meaning well. Yet that comment felt like a punch to the gut.

"My life doesn't revolve around Alison," I snapped.

But she wasn't the type to hold her tongue, and maybe that's why we had become closer than with anyone else in the class. I didn't like to either.

"Well, it sure seems like it does. I saw you and your friends outside, waiting for her. It felt like she was the protagonist of the play and you lot were her loyal sidekicks."

As I thought about what she had just said and all the truth her words held, I knew just what I had to do from now on. Sure, I couldn't change the fact that our clear leader was Alison now and I was just a sidekick. But I sure as hell wasn't going to be a loyal one.


End file.
